


Ignis.

by Croqui



Category: The Arcana (Visual Novel)
Genre: Angst, Character Death, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-08
Updated: 2018-09-08
Packaged: 2019-07-07 06:38:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,521
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15902883
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Croqui/pseuds/Croqui
Summary: “No, Asra, don’t do this.”  You shook your head, feeling more tears spill over. “This is what I want. Please don’t-” But he had pressed his forehead to yours and spoke in a voice so fragile you felt as if it would break.“Stop. I want to. If you were to…” His voice hitched as he took your hands in his and pressed them to his chest. “Wherever you go I follow.”





	Ignis.

**Author's Note:**

> º Note: I have taken some liberties and bent the story a wee bit, but nothing too drastic since I have only played Asra’s route so far. Only the circumstances in how the apprentice came to the Lazaret is changed to the apprentice and Asra having gone to the Lazaret in hopes of trying to help those sick instead of the apprentice having ended up there because they were already infected with the plague. So sans the apprentice working at the clinic from Julians route. Everything in between/character interactions still remain intact except it’s set in the Lazaret. )

When you first step onto the island, the vast shades of green, moss, and emerald all seem to have you transfixed. Vines of thick plants swirl from the base of trees upwards along branches, flowers that display vibrant hues peeking out from beyond shrubs as if to say hello to the evening sun that kisses your skin warm, enveloping you in a soothing moment of bliss. You let out a deep sigh, feeling a sense of beauty and calm that goes just as quickly as it came, all too soon gone and replaced with an ache that runs deep. Against your better judgment your shoulders sag forward, eyes falling from the vibrant green and onto the small path laid out in front of you. This place, a place where vegetation runs free and able to grow to their full capabilities without being bound, to have anyone to tell them otherwise, was so beautiful, so pure for the truth that lay housed in its center. Some part of you can’t help but accept that this was part of the illusion. That if one were to peel back the layers and reveal the rotting core, no one would see this place for anything more than it truly was: a place of pain and death.

 

You purse your lips, feeling your blood go cold and your heart still.

 

_This is it._

 

_No turning back._

 

You feel a hand at your shoulder, feel it give a soft squeeze and for a brief moment you wonder if your thoughts had somehow been made visible to the world.

 

“Asra.” You call out his name, your throat thick with emotion threatening to spill. Your hand reaches for his, placing it atop where Asra’s lies on your shoulder. There’s a thrumming in your ears, one that makes your head feel hot and mind dizzy.

 

_I can’t slip. Not now._

 

You try your best to regain composure, taking a deep breath and holding as you grip tightly to Asra’s hand, wondering if the contact alone is enough to keep you grounded in reality. Closing your eyes you try to will the thoughts away, not wanting to break, not here in front of Asra, not after all that you had said.

 

_Deep breaths. You can do it. Just-_

 

Your mind goes quiet as you concentrate on your breathing and after a few moments you feel your head start to clear.

 

_Concentrate. Breathe. You can do this, you can do this, you can-_

 

You turn to find Asra staring at you, eyes intense. You give him a smile, but whether its an attempt to fool yourself or Asra you aren’t exactly sure. Still, there’s an uneasiness lingering in the corners you can’t seem to shake. But if Asra notices he doesn’t comment. Instead he gives a smile of his own, one that seems to almost mickmick yours, laced with uncertainty and doubt. It had taken quite some time to convince him to agree to your plan after all, to show weakness now when you had been so certain before...  You knew prior to him even saying anything that if it were up to him, Asra would want nothing more than to run, grab you by the hand and get as far away from harm as possible, yet you wanted to stay and help those in need. And the day you finally _finally_ managed to convince him after weeks of trying to get him to see reason, you had taken his hands in yours and spilled your heart out.

 

➽➽➽

 

_“I can’t run away. Not when I know there’s some way that I can help.” You had felt your voice waver then, tears blurring your vision. “If you were-” Your breath catched in your throat before you could finish the sentence. You looked up and saw Asra with his eyes closed, eyebrows knotted in hurt, his mouth set into a thin line._

 

_“Hey-” One of your hands went up to rest your palm on his cheek. You felt Asra’s breath hitch, saw him open his eyes, saw them clouded in fear as they stared back at you. You steeled your voice. “If you were one of them, I would be doing everything in my power to help you. And I want to… I want to-” Asra’s hand came up to meet yours and you remember having seen tears spill over and onto his cheeks. “I want to help, if there’s any way that I can then I will.”_

 

_You watched as Asra took a deep breath, placing a kiss at the palm of your hand before running his thumb alongside your cheek, wiping at the wetness there._

 

_“Only if I come with you.”_

 

_Those words, you remember how they sent a cold wave down your spine._

 

 _“No, Asra, don’t do this.”  You shook your head, feeling more tears spill over. “This is what_ **_I_ ** _want. Please don’t-” But he had pressed his forehead to yours and spoke in a voice so fragile you felt as if it would break._

 

_“Stop. I want to. If you were to…” His voice hitched as he took your hands in his and pressed them to his chest. “Wherever you go I follow.”_

 

_➽➽➽_

 

The uncertainty that hung in the air feels as if it were a thick smog, suffocating. One you didn’t know how to break out of, both of you watching each others face for any sign of doubt. He’s as committed to this just as you are, but there was no doubt in your mind that if you so much spoke your thoughts of hesitation he would haul you out of there and far away from everything and everyone and into the arms of safety. All that he simply needed was that small bloom of uncertainty.  He stood frozen, almost unmoving as he studied your face; watching, waiting. But you didn’t budge knowing all too well that the feeling deep in your gut overpowered the hesitation you were facing now. Knowing that now that you had stepped into the reality of it, had stepped into the dragon's mouth, there was no turning back. No, your pride and sense of duty wouldn’t allow you.

 

You straighten your back, trying to seem more sure of yourself than you really are. Clearing your throat, you look away from Asra, unable to meet his gaze any longer -fearing that you’ll break if you do- and stare at the trail ahead. And despite your best efforts the heaviness in your heart lingers. You can sense it, feel its claws as if it were crawling up and under your skin inching its way deeper, past your skin and bones and onto your heart where you feel its talons grab you relentlessly. You try to peer past. Focusing on the the vegetation you were so enamoured with a few moments ago and taking notice how the further your eyes scan the trail ahead the more they decay, wilting into a sickly brown. Rotting. Just like the islands center. You’re shaking. You must be because Asra steps in front of you, blocking your view from the stone towers that you could see even from where you stand, towers that rise higher than any tree. He places both his hands on your shoulders, presses his forehead to yours, and you feel as if your worries are melting away.

 

_Ah._

 

The warmth that seems to spill from his hands make you feel as if he was smoothing away any trace of doubt. His magic always did seem to have such an effect on you. You sigh, allowing your body to go lax.

 

“Thank you, Asra.”

 

He smiles, a smile so soft and reassuring and you’re sure that you could feel the beat of his heart synced along with yours, perfectly... together.

 

“So this is the Lazaret.” Asra exclaims, taking a deep breath and a couple of steps back as if to give you space. You watch him shuffle in place for a bit, uncertain, before grabbing both your bags off the ground and slinging them over his shoulder. “You know, for something so pretty it sure does house a great deal.” He turns to look at you. “But I guess we aren’t all without baggage, huh?”

 

You click your tongue. “Death isn’t really baggage.”

 

Asra’s laugh rings with a hint of melancholy. “No.” You watch as his smile fades, eyes somber. “No, I suppose not.”

 

You and Asra walk in silence as you make your way to the center. Taking note of the aura of the Lazaret getting thicker, bearing your shoulders down and heavy the closer you get to the stone walls that seem to stretch impossibly tall. For all the times you’ve heard of it -of this place filled to the brim with death- nothing could really compare to seeing it first hand, to feeling the immense dread that lingers in the air and that clings to your skin as if wanting nothing more than to suffocate you in the sea of misery.

 

_The Lazaret._

 

You whisper it, feeling the name on your tongue and find that it only manages to bring a foul taste.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm also taking The Arcana prompts on my tumblr  
> https://mlkmart.tumblr.com/  
> if any of you want to drop one in ^u^


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